POLAND'S ruling party leader has refused to back down over controversial judicial reforms that have seen his country clash furiously with the European Union.

Poland's ruling party leader has vowed to carry out reforms despite EU objections

Law and Justice Party (PiS) leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said there is "no way Poland would hand in a decision on the court reforms to the European Court of Justice" as he asserted his government’s right to make its own laws.

Mr Kaczynski told Polish daily newspaper Gazeta Polska Codziennie the "program of deep changes in our country will not slow down, on the contrary".

He said: "There cannot be any talk about reaching an agreement with powers that for years treated Poland as their own private loot."

He added: "There is of course no way Poland would hand in a decision on the court reforms to the European Court of Justice. This is our internal competence guaranteed by EU law."

In a joint statement, the leaders of Hungary, Czechia, Croatia and Slovakia, alongside Poland, said: "EU institutions should treat all member states equally and act strictly within the remits of their respective Treaty-based competences.

"The right of member states to carry out domestic reforms within their competences should be respected."

Mr Morawiecki, for his part, says the dispute between Poland and the EU is just a "misunderstanding" and has called for further dialogue between the two parties.

He and other central and eastern European leaders have demanded a greater role in the bloc and say they want to be taken more seriously by the Eurocrats at the centre of the EU.